Personal Computers Getting Cheaper

PC makers lower prices on softer demand

Prices for personal computers are now approaching Black Friday levels.

PC makers — which suffered a 14% drop in year-over-year sales — are cutting prices to move their products, MarketWatch is reporting.

“We’re seeing prices on laptops that we’d normally see on Black Friday,” Louis Ramirez of DealNews.com says. Manufacturers are lowering prices in response to a much lower demand for their products.

Amid the softening of the market, only Lenovo is flat in terms of sales. The Chinese computer maker is aggressively cutting prices to build market share. Hewlett-Packard (NYSE:HPQ) still has the highest market-share at 16%, but Lenovo is closing the gap at 15%.

With Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), however, it’s the higher-priced computers that sell well. Apple’s $1,200 iMac is the top seller at Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), and the company’s MacBook Pro and MacBook Air are both in the top three of laptop sales for the online retailer.

Some of the drop in PC sales can be attributed to the ongoing tablet computer revolution, but not all. While tablets are increasing in popularity, one retailer, Yung Trang of Techbargains.com says, “While tablets and mobile phones are taking share from traditional budget laptops, the popularity of desktop computers and Ultrabooks are holding steady.”